exercise

ex|er|cise¹ W2S1 [ˈeksəsaız US -ər-] n

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1¦(for health)¦

2¦(movement)¦

3¦(for a skill)¦

4¦(in a book)¦

5¦(for a particular result)¦

6¦(army/navy etc)¦

7 the exercise of something

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[Date: 1300-1400; : French; Origin: exercice, from Latin exercitium, from exercere 'to drive on, keep busy']

1.) ¦(FOR HEALTH)¦[U]

physical activities that you do in order to stay healthy and become stronger

▪ Try to fit some regular exercise into your daily routine.

▪ Working in an office, I don't get much exercise.

do/take exercise

▪ Most people need to do more exercise.

gentle/light exercise

▪ Gentle exercise can be beneficial for older people.

vigorous/strenuous exercise

▪ After the operation, you should avoid strenuous exercise.

2.) ¦(MOVEMENT)¦

a movement or set of movements that you do regularly to keep your body healthy

▪ stretching exercises

▪ You can do exercises to strengthen your stomach muscles.

3.) ¦(FOR A SKILL)¦ [C usually plural]

an activity or process that helps you practise a particular skill

▪ relaxation exercises

▪ role-play exercises

4.) ¦(IN A BOOK)¦

a set of questions in a book that test a student's knowledge or skill

▪ Do Exercises 3 and 4 on page 51 for homework.

5.) ¦(FOR A PARTICULAR RESULT)¦ [singular]

an activity or situation that has a particular quality or result

▪ closing libraries as part of a cost-cutting exercise

▪ It's a pointless exercise.

exercise in

▪ Buying a house can be an exercise in frustration.

6.) ¦(ARMY/NAVY ETC)¦ [U and C]

a set of activities for training soldiers etc

▪ a military exercise

on exercise

▪ Half the unit was away on exercise.

7.) the exercise of sth

formal the use of a power or right

▪ the exercise of political leadership

exercise ²

exercise² W2S3 v

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1¦(use something)¦

2¦(do physical activity)¦

3¦(use part of your body)¦

4¦(animal)¦

5¦(make somebody think)¦

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1.) ¦(USE SOMETHING)¦ [T] formal

to use a power, right, or quality that you have

▪ There are plans to encourage people to exercise their right to vote.

▪ People who can exercise some control over their surroundings feel less anxious.

2.) ¦(DO PHYSICAL ACTIVITY)¦

to do sports or physical activities in order to stay healthy and become stronger

▪ It's important to exercise regularly.

3.) ¦(USE PART OF YOUR BODY)¦ [T]

to make a particular part of your body move in order to make it stronger

▪ Swimming exercises all the major muscle groups.

4.) ¦(ANIMAL)¦ [T]

to make an animal walk or run in order to keep it healthy and strong

▪ people exercising their dogs in the park

5.) ¦(MAKE SOMEBODY THINK)¦ [T] [i]formal

a) to make someone think about a subject or problem and consider how to deal with it

▪ It's an issue that's exercised the minds of scientists for a long time.

b) BrE if something exercises someone, they think about it all the time and are very anxious or worried - often used humorously

▪ It was clear that Flavia had been exercised by this thought.